New York — In his latest announcement for the New York City mayoral race, Andrew Cuomo It opens on a harsh note: “Life in New York is hard now.”
Then comes criticism of Zahran Mamdani, the Democratic candidate who the former governor said lacks enough experience to lead the city: “Candidates who need on-the-job training can’t fix it.” He says.
In their final days on the campaign trail before Election Day on Tuesday, Cuomo, Mamdani and Republican Curtis Sliwa are making their closing arguments to voters.
For Cuomo, 67, it’s a message that voters must prevent Mamdani from leading the city into ruin, presenting himself as the only person who can keep the city safe and move it forward.
Meanwhile, Mamdani is trying to continue riding the wave of progressive excitement that carried him to victory in the June primary — while weathering the latest barrage of attacks from Cuomo and other critics wary of giving a 34-year-old democratic socialist the reins of America’s largest city.
As early voting ends on Sunday, he is shaking hands with everyone from social media influencers to airport taxi drivers, as he urges his supporters not to become complacent. “People say, ‘We got this. It’s over. Cuomo has been cooked.” He says In one of the popular videos on the Internet. “Don’t believe it.”
Sliwa is running an aggressive ground-level campaign of his own, reaching the city’s subways and streets with his pitch focused on public safety and… Warning about that His Democratic opponents are “two sides of the same coin.”
Cuomo, a Democrat who ran on the ballot as an independent, spent the final stretch working to convince Republicans that he was a more viable candidate than Sliwa.
He met with Jewish and Muslim leaders. There has been a range of media visits on traditional news channels, but also appearances on shows hosted by YouTuber-turned-boxer-turned-pro-wrestler Logan Paul as well as Steven A. Smith, a commentator on sports and politics.
Much of the former governor’s rhetoric has been characterized by grim warnings of social and economic collapse if Mamdani wins, along with assertions that his record as governor makes him a more suitable choice.
In an interview this week with Fox Business, Cuomo said Mamdani, who was born in Uganda to parents of Indian descent but grew up in New York City, “doesn’t understand New York culture.”
“Republicans, there are two choices, me or Mamdani. Don’t waste your votes,” Cuomo said.
Former New York Gov. David Paterson, who campaigned for Cuomo, said Cuomo increased negativity because previous jabs at Mamdani’s inexperience and agenda did not slow his momentum.
“Usually I say: Take it easy. You’re both running for mayor. “You both care about the city, so just get your message out there,” Patterson said. “In this case, the reason he did this is because this message has not yet been filtered.”
Sliwa, 71, has returned to the place where he gained fame as the creator of the Guardian Angels crime-fighting patrols: the city’s underground.
He has held almost daily press conferences across the transit network, stressing his message that he will make trains safer.
like Rainstorm On Thursday, it caused localized flooding in parts of the city, and Saliwa filmed a video on social media as cars passed through a small puddle that had developed at one of the road intersections, denouncing the state of the city’s sewage system.
It reflects local quality-of-life issues that the longtime talk radio host has kept at the center of his colorful campaign.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly rejected Saliwa’s nomination – He made fun of his passion for saving cats – But Pray waved criticism.
“The homeless, the emotionally disturbed, the veterans that we don’t take care of — we don’t need a tough guy to be mayor,” Saliwa said in an interview with CNN. “We need someone who is compassionate, considerate, and caring.” “And this is Curtis Sliwa.”
By contrast, he said Cuomo is “cold-hearted” and “angry.”
“No one votes for anger,” Saliwa said.
Sliwa wore his distinctive red hat to cast his ballot on the first day of early voting, but he did not bring a cat with him As he did When he runs against Mayor Eric Adams in 2021.
Mamdani, a state assemblyman, tried to stay on the offensive.
Last weekend, he filled a stadium in Queens with more than 10,000 people to march alongside U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez — playing to a friendly crowd receptive to his platform of using government programs to reduce New York’s rising costs of living.
But he said he “will not allow myself to become complacent” as his army of volunteers knocks on doors.
He set up a press conference with social media influencers, appeared on Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show” with Jon Stewart, received an endorsement from the Grocery Store Owners Association and held a midnight news conference in Queens after polling night-shift workers at a nearby hospital and airport.
The all-in-one-place-at-once approach appeared to have helped him secure at least one undecided voter at one of the final stops.
Dr. Rita Bellevue, a retired physician, seemed pleasantly surprised when Mamdani and his gang of news cameras approached her at a bus stop in midtown Manhattan. After that, she said she was deliberating whether to vote for him or for Cuomo.
“I think I’ve just decided,” she said, smiling before rushing to catch the bus.
___
Associated Press writer Jennifer Peltz contributed to this report.